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The Chase Freedom Flex℠ card is a rewarding addition to your wallet whether you value cash back or Chase Ultimate Rewards. The card has no annual fee and combines some of the best features of the Chase Freedom® (which is now closed to new applicants) and the revamped Chase Freedom Unlimited® (Rates & Fees).
The biggest benefit of the Freedom Flex is the 5% cash back on bonus categories that change each quarter. These categories could include gas, dining, grocery store purchases, Amazon, and other popular spending categories.
Freedom Flex cardholders also can redeem their cash-back rewards for travel purchased through the Chase Travel℠ portal or transfer them to partners when they hold a Chase Ultimate Rewards-earning credit card. Let's take a look at what this no-annual-fee card has to offer.
- Earn 5% on up to $1,500 on combined purchases in bonus categories each quarter you activate
- Earn 5% on travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards
- Earn 3% on dining at restaurants, including takeout and eligible delivery services
- Earn 3% on drugstore purchases
- Earn 1% on all other purchases
Page Contents
Chase Freedom Flex Pros
- No annual fee.
- Earn 5% back on rotating quarterly bonus categories and Chase Travel bookings.
- Earn 3% back on dining at restaurants, takeout, eligible delivery services, and drugstores.
- Redeem rewards for cash back or Chase Ultimate Rewards if you also hold an Ultimate Rewards-earning credit card.
Chase Freedom Flex Cons
- A cash-back credit card that doesn't earn flexible points outright.
- The Chase 5/24 rule can make some people ineligible for the card and alters considerations on applying for the card.
Chase Freedom Flex Welcome Bonus
New Freedom Flex can earn a one-time cash bonus of $200 after you spend $500 on purchases in your first 3 months from account opening. If you also hold an Ultimate Rewards-earning credit card like the Chase Sapphire Reserve® (Rates & Fees), you could convert your cash bonus to Ultimate Rewards.
For reference, using your rewards as cash back makes them worth face value (1 rewards point = 1¢). However, AwardWallet users typically redeem Chase Ultimate Rewards points at 1.95¢ apiece, presenting much more value for this welcome bonus.
Related: The Best Rewards Credit Card Bonuses Available This Month
Chase Freedom Flex Benefits
5% quarterly bonuses
Each quarter, you can earn 5% cash back on up to $1,500 in combined purchases in rotating spending categories with the Freedom Flex. Categories change each quarter but have historically included gas, PayPal, Amazon, groceries, and more.
The 5% bonus is worth up to $75 cash back or 7,500 Ultimate Rewards each quarter.
Related: Current 5% Cash Back Categories for Chase Cards
Introductory APR
New Freedom Flex cardholders can enjoy a 0% introductory APR on purchases for 15 months and 0% introductory APR on balance transfers for 15 months. After the introductory period, there will be a Variable APR of 19.24% - 27.99%. Also, note the balance transfer fee of $5 or 5% of the amount of each transfer, whichever is greater.
Related: The Best Credit Cards With No Annual Fee and 0% APR on Balance Transfers
Complimentary DashPass
Get a complimentary six-month DashPass membership as a perk for holding the Freedom Flex. A DashPass membership with DoorDash comes with unlimited deliveries with a $0 delivery fee and reduced service fees on orders placed with DoorDash and Caviar. This benefit must be activated by December 31, 2027.
5% back on Lyft Rides
From now until March 31, 2025, you can earn 5% cash back on Lyft rides. This is an additional 4% back on top of the 1% back on all purchases.
Complimentary Instacart+
Get three months of Instacart+ with $0 delivery fees and reduced service fees on eligible Instacart orders. You'll also earn a $10 statement credit each quarter through July 31, 2024. After the complimentary term, you'll be automatically enrolled in an annual Instacart+ membership until you cancel. You must enroll by July 31, 2024.
Free credit score
Check your credit score for free through Chase Credit Journey.
Cell phone protection
When you use your Freedom Flex to pay your cell phone bill, you'll be eligible for up to $800 per claim and $1,000 per year in cell phone protection if your phone is lost or damaged. There's a maximum of 2 claims in 12 months and a $50 deductible required per claim.
Travel protection
The Freedom Flex also offers select travel protections. When you use your card to pay for a trip, you can be reimbursed up to $1,500 per person and $6,000 per trip on prepaid, non-refundable passenger fares if your trip is canceled or interrupted for a covered reason.
Your card also provides car rental car insurance in the form of auto rental collision damage and theft for most cars in the U.S. and abroad. U.S. coverage is secondary to your personal car insurance.
Lastly, the card offers travel and emergency assistance services. Your card's Benefits Administrator can assist in legal and medical referrals plus other travel and emergency assistance. Note that you'll pay for any services used from these referrals.
Extended warranty and purchase protection
Get up to 120 days of purchase protection against damage or theft when you make an eligible purchase with your Freedom Flex. This benefit covers up to $500 per claim and $50,000 per account.
The card also provides extended warranty protection of up to one year past the U.S. manufacturer's warranty. The original warranty must be for three years or less.
Chase Freedom Flex Earning Rates
The Freedom Flex offers several bonus categories for earnings:
- Earn 5% on up to $1,500 on combined purchases in bonus categories each quarter you activate
- Earn 5% on travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards
- Earn 3% on dining at restaurants, including takeout and eligible delivery services
- Earn 3% on drugstore purchases
- Earn 1% on all other purchases
Your best earnings will come from the rotating quarterly categories and bookings with Chase Travel. You'll also earn well at restaurants and drugstore purchases.
Related: Current 5% Categories for Chase Freedom Cardholders
Redeeming Points With the Chase Freedom Flex
If you use the Freedom Flex strictly for cash back, you can redeem your rewards as a statement credit, for select online retail purchases, for gift cards, or by check. Rewards are redeemed at a rate of 1 cent per point.
If you also hold an Ultimate Rewards-earning credit card like the Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card or the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card, you can redeem your rewards as Chase Ultimate Rewards. Ultimate Rewards can be used to pay for travel in the Chase Travel Portal at elevated rates or transferred to travel partners for even more value. To do this, you'll transfer your cash-back rewards to your other credit card for redemption.
Related: All the Ways To Redeem Ultimate Rewards Points
Application Restrictions
Chase's 5/24 rule states that you cannot open a new Chase card if you have opened five new credit cards (from any bank) in the last 24 months. This is based on what's showing on your personal credit report. If you're unsure, there are free ways to check your 5/24 status.
Chase's other application restrictions include the frequency of credit card applications, the number of cards applied for within a certain timeframe, and when you last received a sign-up bonus. For example, you can only apply for up to two personal cards within 30 days. Despite this, the bank doesn't seem to have a limit on how many Chase cards you can have at one time. You can hold multiple cards within the same family — except for Sapphire cards. You cannot have both the Sapphire Preferred and the Sapphire Reserve at the same time.
And lastly, you can only receive the sign-up bonus for most of Chase's cards once every 24 months. Thus, if you've received a bonus on the Chase Freedom Flex in the last 24 months, you won't be eligible for this welcome offer.
Cards That Compete With the Chase Freedom Flex
- Earn 5% on purchases through Chase Travel℠
- Earn 3% on dining at restaurants
- Earn 3% on drugstore purchases
- Earn 1.5% on all purchases
- 5X points on Lyft rides through September 2027
- 5X points on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠
- 3X points on dining at restaurants worldwide
- 3X points on eligible streaming services
- 3X points on online grocery purchases (excluding Target, Walmart, and wholesale clubs)
- 2X points on all other travel
- 1X point per dollar spent on all other purchases
- 5% cash back on your first $2,000 in eligible net purchases each quarter on the two categories you choose
- 5% cash back on prepaid air, hotel and car reservations booked directly in the Rewards Travel Center
- 2% cash back on one everyday category (like gas or groceries)
- 1% cash back on all other eligible net purchases
- If you don't want to worry about rotating bonus categories each quarter, check out the Chase Freedom Unlimited®. You'll still earn 5% cash back with Chase Travel and 3% back at drugstores and restaurants; instead of the 5% rotating categories, though, you'll earn an elevated 1.5% on all other purchases cash back on all other purchases — higher than the earning on “other” purchases with the Freedom Flex. Learn more in our Chase Freedom Unlimited review.
- If you want to earn Ultimate Rewards instead of cash back, the Sapphire Preferred might be the card for you. The card has a $95 annual fee but comes with valuable travel perks. You'll earn 5x on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠, 3x on dining, select streaming services and online groceries, 2x on all other travel purchases, 1x on all other purchases. and will have access to Chase's 14 airline and hotel partners for points transfers. Our Chase Sapphire Preferred review has further information.
- If you want 5% cash back categories that you can choose, look into the U.S. Bank Cash+® Visa Signature® Card. You'll earn 5% on your first $2,000 in eligible net purchases each quarter on the two categories you choose, 5% on prepaid air, hotel and car reservations booked directly in the Rewards Travel Center, 2% on one everyday category (like gas or groceries), and 1% on all other eligible net purchases with no annual fee on the card. Our U.S. Bank Cash+ Visa review can tell you more.
Bottom Line
The Freedom Flex is a great card to add to your lineup of Chase credit cards. Whether you're using it simply for cash back or to earn more Ultimate Rewards through its rotating quarterly bonus categories, you can't go wrong with having this card in your wallet.
- Earn 5% on up to $1,500 on combined purchases in bonus categories each quarter you activate
- Earn 5% on travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards
- Earn 3% on dining at restaurants, including takeout and eligible delivery services
- Earn 3% on drugstore purchases
- Earn 1% on all other purchases
FAQ
Is the Chase Freedom Flex worth it?
Yes. If you carry any other card within the Ultimate Rewards ecosystem, the Chase Freedom Flex℠ delivers exceptional earning rates for a card without an annual fee, including rotating 5% categories that allow you to maximize your return across a wide range of expenses. This is the perfect companion card for cards in the Ultimate Rewards family that charge an annual fee.
Is the Chase Freedom Flex hard to get?
Applicants require a good to excellent credit score to be approved for the Freedom Flex. While Chase doesn't give you an exact credit score to aim for, based on approval data from AwardWallet members and previous application data, we would assume new applicants need a credit score of at least ~680/690 or more to be eligible for the Freedom Flex card. This is in addition to the 5/24 rule that Chase fans will be more than familiar with.
Which is better Chase Freedom or Chase Freedom Flex?
The Chase Freedom Flex replaced the old Chase Freedom card, essentially superseding the original Freedom card and adding enhanced earning rates and benefits for new cardholders. Thanks to improved bonus categories and a healthy overlap of perks and benefits with the popular Chase Freedom Unlimited, the Chase Freedom Flex is now one of the best all-rounders in the points and miles space.
Is Chase Freedom Flex good for beginners?
Absolutely! Chase offers a top suite of Ultimate Rewards earning credit cards. The Freedom Flex is a great card to anchor a portfolio of cards providing a high return on quarterly bonus categories and travel purchased through Chase, plus you won't pay an annual fee for as long as you hold the card.
How does Chase Freedom cash back work?
If you hold the Freedom Flex as a standalone cash back card, you can redeem rewards at 1¢ per point for cash back or on travel purchases through the Ultimate Rewards Travel Portal, the same as its sister card the Chase Freedom Unlimited. However, if you also hold an Ultimate Rewards earning card that charges an annual fee, such as the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card or Chase Sapphire Reserve, you can combine points earned across all the Ultimate Rewards cards in your wallet, and redeem them for a higher fixed value in the Chase Travel Portal, or transfer them to one of Chase Ultimate Rewards' airline ort hotel transfer partners for potentially much more value. Chase travel partners include high-value options like United MileagePlus, Singapore Airlines Krisflyer, World of Hyatt, Virgin Atlantic Flying Club, and Southwest Rapid Rewards.
Does the Chase Freedom Flex have a signup bonus?
Yes, new account holders will earn a $200 bonus after spending $500 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. For a card that doesn't charge an annual fee, that's a great offer.
For rates and fees of the cards mentioned in this post, please visit the following links: Chase Freedom Unlimited® (Rates & Fees), Chase Sapphire Reserve® (Rates & Fees), and Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card (Rates & Fees)
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